Phormium tenax plant named &#39;PHOS2&#39;

ABSTRACT

‘PHOS2’ is a distinctive variety of  Phormium tenax  which is characterized by a dwarf growth habit with a strong shoot density as compared with common  Phormium tenax , which has a variable growth form ranging from short to tall plant height and sparse to dense shoot density. In addition, ‘PHOS2’ has a bronze mature leaf color, whereas the parental form of common  Phormium tenax  has a mature leaf colour of purple.

RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional PatentApplication Ser. No. 60/711,247, filed Aug. 25, 2005, the disclosure ofwhich is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety.

LATIN NAME OF THE GENUS AND SPECIES

The Latin name-of the novel variety disclosed herein is Phormium tenax.

VARIETY DENOMINATION

The inventive variety of Phormium tenax disclosed herein has been giventhe varietal denomination ‘PHOS2’.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a new and distinct perennial variety ofPhormium tenax, which has been given the varietal denomination of‘PHOS2’. Its market class is that of an ornamental plant. ‘PHOS2’ isintended for use in landscaping and as a decorative plant.

Parentage. The Phormium tenax variety ‘PHOS2’ was selected in anAustralian nursery in the state of New South Wales following a selectionprocess involving large quantities of common Phormium tenax productionstock. ‘PHOS2’ is a seedling selection from common Phormium tenax.‘PHOS2’ was selected due to its dwarf growth habit and its initial greenleaf color which matures to a bronze color.

Asexual reproduction. ‘PHOS2’ was first propagated asexually by divisionin the state of New South Wales, Australia and has since been asexuallypropagated by division and micropropagation.

Divisions were made for several subsequent generations, and ‘PHOS2’ wasobserved to retain the color and size characteristics that were noted inthe original ‘PHOS2’ seedling. Thus, the distinctive characteristics ofthe inventive ‘PHOS2’ variety have remained stable and true to type fromgeneration to generation through successive cycles of asexualreproduction.

An application for plant breeders' rights for variety ‘PHOS2’ has beenfiled with the Australian Plant Breeders' Rights Office, and was firstgazetted in the Plant Varieties Journal under Application No. 2004/251.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

‘PHOS2’ is a distinctive variety of Phormium tenax which ischaracterized by a dwarf growth habit with a strong shoot density ascompared with common Phormium tenax, which has a variable growth formranging from short to tall plant height and sparse to dense shootdensity. In addition, ‘PHOS2’ has a bronze mature leaf color, whereasthe parental form of common Phormium tenax has a mature leaf color ofpurple.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURE

The photograph in the drawing was made using conventional techniques andshows the colours as true as reasonably possible by conventionalphotography. Colours in the photograph may differ slightly from thecolour values cited in the detailed botanical description, whichaccurately describe the colours of the new Phormium tenax.

FIG. 1 shows an exemplary ‘PHOS2’ plant.

BOTANICAL DESCRIPTION OF THE PLANT

The following is a detailed botanical description of a new and distinctvariety of a Phormium tenax ornamental plant known as ‘PHOS2’. Plantobservations were made on plants grown in New South Wales, Australia.Unless indicated otherwise, the descriptions disclosed herein are basedupon observations made of mature ‘PHOS2’ plants grown in nursery potsand field plots.

Those skilled in the art will appreciate that certain characteristicswill vary with older or, conversely, younger plants. ‘PHOS2’ has notbeen observed under all possible environmental conditions. Wheredimensions, sizes, colors and other characteristics are given, it is tobe understood that such characteristics are approximations or averagesset forth as accurately as practicable. The phenotype of the variety maydiffer with variations in the environment such as season, temperature,light intensity, day length, cultural conditions and the like. Colornotations are based on The Royal Horticultural Society Colour Chart,(The Royal Horticultural Society, London, 1995 edition).

‘PHOS2’ is a perennial Phormium tenax plant, which is a seedlingselection from a common Phormium tenax purple form. After its selection,‘PHOS2’ was asexually propagated by division and then bymicropropagation. ‘PHOS2’ has a dwarf growth habit, strong shoot densityand an immature green leaf colour that matures to bronze. A botanicaldescription of ‘PHOS2’ and a comparison with other varieties of Phormiumtenax are provided below. A representative ‘PHOS2’ plant is shown inFIG. 1.

Technical Description of the Variety.

Growth Habit. ‘PHOS2’ is a dwarf, rhizomatous plant forming an uprightdense tuft. Average plant height is 18-25 cm and average plant spread is20 cm in a mature plant grown in a 150 mm nursery pot or field plot inSydney, New South Wales, Australia.

Leaves. The upper side of the mature leaf is brown in color (RHS 200C).When immature, the leaf is a green colour. The leaf is generally 6-8 mmin width, and reaches an average length of 18-20 cm. The leaf shape islinear-ensiform, the leaf base is cauline, the leaf margin is entire,the leaf apex is acute and the leaf surface texture is characterised byfine striations. The leaf venation pattern is parallel and the venationcolor is the same as the rest of the leaf. The leaf attitude is erect tosemi-erect. The color of the base of the shoot where the leaves unite isyellow-green (RHS144C).

Roots. The roots of ‘PHOS2’ are fleshy and thick, similar to otherPhormium tenax.

Flowers. Flower development has not been observed on the new variety.

Environmental Tolerances. ‘PHOS2’ has typical shade tolerance for thespecies. ‘PHOS2’ has been observed to hold color to −8 degrees Celsiuswithout any noticeable change in appearance of the plant. ‘PHOS2’ hasmoderate to good drought tolerance. ‘PHOS2’ has moderate to goodrecovery with watering after severe wilting. ‘PHOS2’ does well in sandysoils, but also tolerates heavy, clay-type soils well.

Disease Resistance. ‘PHOS2’ has average resistance to root rot, similarto other Phormium tenax cultivars. These features and othercharacteristics of the plant are apparent from the FIGURE.

Comparison of ‘PHOS2’ with Other Varieties of Phormium tenax.

‘PHOS2’ has a more dwarf growth habit, stronger shoot density and agreen immature leaf color changing to a bronze mature leaf color,whereas common Phormium tenax is taller, less dense and usually purplein leaf colour (colors ranging from greyed-purple to brown).

‘PHOS2’ has a more dwarf growth habit and greater shoot density thananother comparable type of Phormium tenax, known as ‘Chocolate Fingers’(unpatented). ‘PHOS2’ has a plant height of 18-25 cm and plant width of20-25 cm, whereas ‘Chocolate Fingers’ has a plant height of 30 cm andplant width of 30 cm. ‘PHOS2’ has an upper side mature leaf color ofbrown (RHS 200C), whereas the upper side mature leaf colour of‘Chocolate Fingers’ is a slightly lighter brown (approximately RHS200D).

The combination of its dwarf growth habit, strong shoot density andbronze mature leaf color makes ‘PHOS2’ a desirable ornamental plantsuited for mass production for pot and landscape use.

1. A new and distinct variety of Phormium tenax plant named ‘PHOS2’,substantially as described and illustrated herein.